Sun Pharma gains 4% after crashing 14% in past two days

The stock recovered 8% from Friday's low after the Sun Pharma urged the markets regulator to examine the role of some media houses with regard to the allegations raised by the whistle-blower.

Shares of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries gained 4 per cent to Rs 406 apiece on the BSE in intra-day trade on Monday, after the pharmaceutical firm on Friday urged markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to examine the role of some media houses with regard to the allegations raised by the whistle-blower.

The stock recovered 8 per cent from its Friday's intra-day low of Rs 375 on the BSE. In past two trading days, Sun Pharma had plunged 13.7 per cent to a six-year low on Friday, wiping out Rs 15,200 crore from its market valuation amid reports of a new whistle-blower complaint against the country's largest drug maker.

The stock has corrected 25 per cent since the news of a whistle-blower complaint to the Sebi surfaced in November. In the last one year, it has fallen 32 per cent till Friday.

Sun Pharma said, "the said whistleblower documents and other confidential emails are being offered for inspection to institutional investors by one media house as per the media report, which again we are not privy to."

"In these circumstances, there is a great asymmetry in the information circulating between analysts, investors and media leading to intense speculation. The availability of information contained in the whistleblower documents to a set of selective investors does put other investors including retail investors in a disadvantageous position," it added.

The company further said it was concerned that certain entities/individuals are adopting unfair trade practices prejudicial to the interest of shareholders and other stakeholders. It is evident from the fact that shareholders value has been drastically eroded within a short span of time due to unsubstantiated complaint/allegation against the company and mala fide campaign launched by certain media houses.

We request your office to examine the matter in its entirety, and the role of some media houses and other stakeholders, Sun Pharma said.

At 10:16 am; Sun Pharma was trading 3 per cent higher at Rs 402 on the BSE. The stock was the largest gainer among the S&P BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 index. The counter has seen huge trading volumes with a combined 24 million equity shares changed hands in the first hour of trade on the NSE and BSE.